It is rare for a retired bureaucrat to merit an obituary in national media, as was the case with Ashok Jaitly who passed away recently aged 73. What was equally rare was the fact that it made for headline news in every newspaper in Jammu & Kashmir where he played such a crucial role, including a long stint as chief secretary from 1996 to 2002. Like most civil servants he sought anonymity, but the very nature of his job, and indeed, his career spent mostly in the Valley during tumultuous times, denied him that wish.
The 1964 batch Indian Administrative Service officer, popularly called 'Tony' by friends and colleagues, was one of the first to be seconded to the Jammu and Kashmir cadre. The government of the day seemed to have decided that Jaitly, educated in St Stephen's and Cambridge University, was best suited for the strife-torn state. The first IAS officer of the Jammu and Kashmir cadre was R.K. Takkar of the 1962 batch. Jaitly became the second (there were none from the 1963 batch) when, in 1964, he was posted to Anantnag district as an assistant commissioner.
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It was a time when anti-India emotions were running high, which explained why Anantnag was referred to as "Islamabad" by most Kashmiris. For a freshly minted civil servant, Kashmir was a steep learning curve. This was at a time when J&K, the only state in India with a constitution of its own, was moving to greater administrative integration with the Indian Union. For officials like Jaitly, their role was seen as a mission connected to nation-building.
His was a poor start, in the literal sense. His salary as assistant commissioner was Rs 550 per month, and he used to take a tonga to move around since the official vehicle was often not available. In the Dak Bungalow he stayed at, he had one stove perched on a window which was perpetually kept open for fresh air and light since power was a luxury at the time. His initial days were spent getting to know the people and their problems, and of course, interacting with politicians, among them, M.L. Fotedar of the Congress.
His baptism would, however, come by fire. Evan as he was settling down, the 1965 war with Pakistan broke out. There was firing all around and Pakistani soldiers were massed on the border. He rushed to office to meet his Deputy Commissioner Khalid Ansari, the elder brother of current vice president Hamid Ansari, They faced a huge challenge; a sensitive border state faced with the prospect of war where the primary responsibility was to look after the welfare of the civilians and also coordinate with other government departments.
Surprisingly, once the war was over, he was posted to Poonch. Traditionally, this was a border area where senior officers on the last stages of their career would be posted. For Jaitly, this was an opportunity to do something that would define his career—avoid the well trodden path. The young officer went fully prepared to stay for a long stint. He carted with him thirteen boxes, 10 full of books, and one each with clothes, linens and kitchen items. At Poonch, the experience was completely different. Instead of politicians and government officials, here his job was to resolve issues related to the Army and the civilian population. This made him the buffer between the two sides and it required all his bureaucratic skills combined with artful diplomacy.
His legacy in Jammu & Kashmir, and the reason why his death made headlines, was for the initiatives he took that overturned existing norms. When he went to Ladakh as Development Commissioner, he questioned the absence of tourists. This was due to the fact that civilians and foreigners had to seek special permission from the home ministry. He is widely credited with setting in motion the process to change the policy by taking up the issue with the home ministry.
In his other role, as Secretary, Industries, Jaitly took it upon himself to engage with investors and travelled to other states along with chief minister Farooq Abdullah to woo them. It was Jaitly who came up with the novel idea of setting up a HMT factory because watch making needed a pollution-free setting. Even when he was posted outside the state, he showed his heart belonged to J&K.
Another more controversial contribution was when protests and public uprisings in support of self determination were at their peak in 1989, Jaitly is believed to have signed a petition along with state government employees addressed to the United Nations, protesting against human rights violations by security forces in the Valley. Kashmiris fondly remember him for this gesture. Later, separatists apparently construed his signature on the petition as an attempt by an "Indian representative" to gain a foothold in Kashmir to "benefit" New Delhi. However, those close to the power circles at the time said that Jaitly was one IAS officer whose work won the hearts and minds of the employees in Kashmir. He was one bureaucrat who did not hesitate to stand for Kashmir and its people.
The then J&K Governor Lakshmi Kant Jha had recommended that Jaitly be sent to Delhi and he was posted as special assistant to Industries Minister George Fernandes during the Janata Party rule in the late 70s. In his new role, he worked hard to convince a multinational company to set up a plant in the Valley to take advantage of the abundant fresh fruits widely available. It was the first multinational to enter the Valley and the juice making plant in Sopore is seen as one of Jaitly's many contributions to the state.
Equally, he earned a reputation for his straight forwardness, intellect, integrity, hard work and dynamism. He always backed his juniors to the hilt. On one occasion, a junior officer sacked 300 staff members who had been illegally appointed. Tensions rose and there was an uproar outside the office of the junior who approached Jaitly for advice. His prompt reply was, "If there are more such people, send their names to me, I will sack them."
When he was posted in Delhi, those who knew Tony say he thought he was being sidelined as he was made adviser to the J&K government in Delhi and operated from Kashmir House. But there were also those who say that unlike most other officers who want to serve only in Delhi, Jaitly loathed the idea of coming to Delhi. He told a friend that bureaucrats in Delhi only back stab each other and nothing happens beyond files moving from one table to another. For him, there was more satisfaction serving in the state because he could be the vehicle of change for the people's social and economic betterment. In Kashmir, there is still talk about the "change" that came about when he returned to Kashmir as the chief secretary in 1996.
He was accused of being arrogant and on several occasions he was undermined by his rivals in the administration. His career suffered for being "loyal" to those under whom he worked, most notably, Farooq Abdullah. Jaitly is still regarded as one of the most brilliant officers to serve in Kashmir but his "closeness" to Abdullah while the latter was chief minister raised many eyebrows. Jaitly was seen as Abdullah's eyes and ears and his right hand man. Because of that closeness, he also faced criticism, as he did when the controversial Special Operations Group of the J&K police was set up. The Kashmiris blamed Abdullah for raising the force seen as anti-people, but Jaitly, as executor of the policy, shared the brickbats.
Despite his high profile position as chief secretary and his St Stephen's/Cambridge background, Jaitly was not one to succumb to vanity. He hated to discard anything. He would keep his old shirts even if they were torn from the collar. He would collect six to seven such torn shirts and ask the tailor to stitch them with the collar inside out because it cost him only Rs 2. His driver would plead with him to buy a new shirt but Jaitly wouldn't give up until it was completely finished.
Like his old shirts, there were many ups and downs in Jaitly's life but one thing that nobody could question was his passion for Kashmir and its people. Even today when Kashmiris look back at his tenure, they say that Jaitly "never tried to sabotage" any positive move on Kashmir. And, as one of his friends put it, he became half Kashmiri and half Muslim. Indeed, after an exhausting day, he would say "Hey Allah!" before calling it a day. It was entirely fitting then, that according to his wishes, his ashes were buried in the Valley.
